Bill goes after assault weapons

Penalties for buying, selling and using them illegally could be 15 years to life

February 7, 2008|By Linda Kleindienst Tallahassee Bureau Chief

TALLAHASSEE — Hoping to reverse the escalating criminal use of assault weapons, two South Florida legislators are seeking harsher prison terms for crimes involving the high-powered guns.

The legislation was filed after several high-profile South Florida killings, including the slaying of a Miami-Dade County police officer, involving semiautomatic or automatic firearms.

Sponsored by Sen. Gwen Margolis, D-Sunny Isles Beach, and Rep. Evan Jenne, D-Dania Beach, the bill would impose a mandatory life sentence on anyone who uses a semiautomatic or automatic weapon during a crime that results in death or serious bodily injury.

"Only raising the penalty will make people realize they're going to spend a lot of time in jail," Margolis said.

The legislation also calls for a minimum mandatory 25-year prison term for anyone who uses a semiautomatic or automatic weapon to commit any crime. If a criminal purchases or sells that type of weapon by using false identification, even if it isn't used to commit a crime, both the buyer and seller could face up to 15 years in prison and as much as $25,000 in fines.

"In rural parts of Florida, good people use guns to hunt animals. In South Florida, animals use guns to hunt good people," Jenne said.

The legislation, Senate Bill 782 and House Bill 425, drew prompt support from people on law enforcement's front line.

"Assault weapons are the weapons of choice for criminals today," said Robert Parker, director of the Miami-Dade Police Department.

But the plan drew immediate opposition from the National Rifle Association, a powerful lobby in Tallahassee with many supporters in the Legislature.

Marion Hammer, the NRA's lobbyist, called the proposal "political eyewash," saying it isn't needed and has flaws that could put innocent people at risk of being charged with a crime.

"They claim the intent is to increase penalties," she said. "I would suggest to you the penalties they are trying to increase are not necessary. It's already a 15-year penalty for using semiautomatics for the commission or attempted commission of a crime. If you kill somebody with one, it's already life."

Police organizations have lined up behind the measure, with support coming from the Florida Police Chiefs Association, the Florida Sheriffs Association, the Fraternal Order of Police and the Police Benevolent Association.

"If this law were in place, we might have been able to stop the killer before a good officer lost his life," Margolis said of Jose Somohano, a four-year police veteran gunned down last year by a Margate man who had purchased an AK-47 using false identification.

The 10-year federal ban on assault rifles expired in 2004. Law enforcement agencies and a recent statewide grand jury report have expressed concerns over the growing presence of assault weapons, which they contend are favored by gangs.

On New Year's Day, an 8-month-old baby in Riviera Beach was killed when two gunmen sprayed a home with assault rifles. The infant was strapped into a car seat.

Linda Kleindienst can be reached at lkleindienst@sun-sentinel.com or 850-224-6214.